Transposing mechanism for pianos, organs, and the like



.Ma 17 1927. y o. RICHARDS TRANSPOSING ME ICHANISM FDR PIANOS, ORGANS,AND THE LIKE Filed June 4, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet; 1

May 17 1927. 1,629,052

0. RICHARDS TRANSPOSING MECHANISM FOR PIANOS, ORGANS, AND THE LIKE FiledJpne 4. 1924 ZSheats-Sheet 2- i v '""""t .V6 3

Patented May 17, 1927.

PATENT OFFICE.

OSCAR RICHARDS, OF MONTROSE, COLORADO.

TRANSPOSING MECHANISM FOR PIANOS, ORGANS, AND THE LIKE.

Application filed June 4,

This invention relates to pianos, pipe organs and reed organs, andparticularly to transposing means therefor.

The general objectof the invention is to provide means whereby a pianistor organist may transpose music from any key or pitch to any other keyor pitch while at the same time fingering the piano or organ preciselythe same as usual, thatis, as the music is written, thus making itpossible to play any piece of music in twelve different keys whilefingering the same way every time.

A. further object is to provide means whereby the keyboard or otheraction part of a piano, pipe organ or reed organ may be re-modeled so asto provide for this transposition of pitch or whereby an additional orupper keyboard may be disposed within the piano, organ or the like forthe same purpose or to provide a portable attachment adapted to beplaced upon the keyboard of a pianoand readily put in place or removedtherefrom.

A still further object is to provide a construction of this characterwherein in certain forms of the inventionthe transposing attachment isshiftable longitudinally along beneath the keys or over the keys bymeans of racks and gear wheels, thus permitting the manually operablefinger wheel to be provided with indicia indicating the extent to whichthe keyboard has been shifted.

Another object is to provide means whereby the abstracts or wippens maybe lifted, so as to permit the movement of the transposing keys, and toprovide means whereby the cam which controls this lifting movement maybe actuated from the front of the piano or organ.

Other objects have to do with the details of construction andarrangement of parts as will appear more fully hereinafter.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein z-Figin'e 1 is a sectional view through a pi ano casing showing mytransposing keyboard and transposing key bed or frame;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view through a pianoaction and thekeyboard, my transposing keyboard being partly shown in elevation;

Figure 8 is a fragmentary side elevation of the rack and pinion wherebyto secure the shifting of the transposing keyboard;

1924. Serial No. 717,816.

Figure 4 is a side elevation of the means whereby the cam 10 may beactuated;

Figure 5 is a top plan view of a transposing keyboard constructedsomewhat differently from the keyboard shown in Figure 1 but alsoshifted by means of the rack and pinion heretofore referred to. v

Referring to Figures 1 and? it will be seen that I have illustrated inFigure 2 an ordinary piano action where 2 is the hammer rail and 1 theaction rail, 3 the tongue rail, 4 the tongue, 5 the abstract, 6 asupporting bracket, 7' the wippen, 8 the usual key, and 9 the capstanscrew. This capstan screw of all of the abstracts 5 should be carried bythe abstracts 5 and not by the keys 8 so that difl erent adjustments aremade to take up lost motion in the piano action and the keys 8 will atall times remain perfectly level. It will be understood, of course, thatthe piano action is typical merely and that many variations of thispiano action might be used with my invention.

It will be also seen that I have not illustrated all the parts of theaction but merely enough to identify it as an action. Mounted inbearings 53 in the ends A of the frame of the piano action is atransversely extending cam 10 (see Figures 1 and 2) which extendsentirely across the piano and is supported immediately below all of thetongues 4. so that as this cam 10 is oscillated in one direction it willlift up on all. of the tongues i and, therefore, lift up on all of thewippens 5 and the capstan screws 9, leaving the cap stan screws entirelyabove the keys 8. This cam 10 is oscillated by means of an arm 10connected to a rod 1.1 which extends through the front of the case andis provided with a button whereby it may be operated. This rod ispreferably provided with a ratchet notch 11 whereby the cam may be heldin its lifter-raising position by simply engaging the notch with thefront of the piano case.

here pianos do not have the tongues 4- nor the abstracts 5 as, forinstance, in certain makes of pianos, as in the lSIarshall & Wendellupright piano and others, the cam 10 is not disposed below the tongues4, there being no tongues 4, but this cam is shown as disposed in dottedlines 10b in F igure 2 and immediately beneath the wippen so that theoperation of the cam will lift the wippen up and thus cause a clearancebetween the wipgig; 1,629,052

pens and the keys or key projections. The or the lowest bass stringswould be out of means for operating this cam 10" is shown actio Inasmuchas the highest treble in Figure where a bell crank lever 17 is providedconnected by a link 18 to an arm extending from the member 10 thedepending arm of the bell crank 17 being connected to an operating rod11* which extends through to the front of the piano.

One of the forms of my inyention and the form which is illustrated inFigures 1 and 2 consists ot a movable keyboard or key bed 26 which haseituer more. less. or as many keys as the regular keyboard of the piano.This keyboard mounted on rollers 13 (see Figure El). there being a purality of pairs of these rollers, each pair being arranged upon a shaft15. each of these rollers being provided with gear teeth l-l operatingupon a rack formed in or carried by the longitudinal frame members 15.The outer end of the shatt 16 carries upon it a head l2 whereby it maybe operated. and thus it will b seen that by turning this head 19. inone direction or the other the whole frame consisting of the pieces 15and the transverse pieces and the keys supported thereby, as will belater described, may be shifted in one direction or the other relativeto the abstracts 5 or the ,wippens '7. Keys are mounted upon the usualkey rail 8 having the usual key button and key pin.

It will be obvious that a depression of the key 8 will cause a littingupof the abstracts 5 and the operation of the hammer it in the usualmanner. The keys 8 are straight and com-distant. as shown in Figure 1..and the litters or abstracts 5 and the hammers 21 are to be equi-distantalso and. of course. the strings or unisons 19 which can be accomplishedby mounting all of the strings in parallel relation to each other. This.of course, would requirethe rails 1. i3- and 3 to be made stronger andto be supported from the-ends alone or roinlt'orced it need he by metalbeams or rods running full length of the rails. I have not illustratedthis. as this terms no part of my invention and will. of course, beobvious to any manufacturer ot pianos.

It will be obvious that with this construction it is only necessary intransposing tor the keyboard 26 to be shifted loiuritudin in onedirection or the other-to the degreerequired to make the transposition.The keyboard may have more keys than are used in the ordinary piano sothat whether it shifted in one direction or the other there would alwaysbe keys in connection with, every abstract or the keyboard could havethe usual length and when in its usual or normal position there would bea key beneath every abstract but in this latter case when the keyboardwas shifted either in one direction or the other either some of thehighest treble strings would be out of action n. igs and lowest bassstrings are not otter: used. this would not render the piano practicallyinoperative.

lo the operation ol this mechanism, when the piano is used in theordii'iary manner the keys 8 are disposed immediately below usual absracts. but when it desired tent to which the operating handle 12 isturned so tlnt the operator will know exactly to where the keys havebeen ad- ;ted. After the supporting frame for the in other words the keybed has been adjusted to the proper transposing position. the cam ll) isshifted again to the full line position in Figure 2 so as to lower thebstracts 5 onto the rear ends of the keys and the piano then incondition tor playing.

In the ordinary piano the action is supported in four places at each endand by action brackets which restupon the rear ot the key bed bet-weenthe V-shaped spaces 28 shown in Figure 4. The construction shown inFigures 1 and 2 where there is only one keyboard which shifts sidewisewould not permit the use of these two medially disposed action bracketsat the points 28, as there are no V-SlltlPOtl spaces between the keys inFigures 1 and 2 and there must not he in this construction. for it therewere then when the keybtmrd was shilted sidowise some of the keys wouldcome into this V-shapod spar-e atthe rear. where with the ordinary coinstruction there are no abstracts or jack rockers and some of the keyswould. there- 'l'ore, become useless and silent. which would bedisastrous and unsatisfactory to any musician. This does notniatter withtho key; as before explained, in the low bass or extremely hightrel'ilo. as these keys are seldom u ed, but all the keys near thecenter of the keylmard must be oi'ierative at all times. Thus. with theconstruction shown in Figures 1 and 2 the action would have to be lltlcould be applied to pianos by re-modeling the pianos or appliedinitially. It will be understood the same principle might be ap plied topipe organs or reed organs.v

While I have illustrated and described three several embodiments of myinvention, I do not wish to be limited to the details of constructionshown therein, as it is obvious these might be changed in many wayswithout departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim 1. In a keyed musical instrument, the combination with theaction thereof, of keys mounted for movement beneath the action andadapted thereby to register with the action in a plurality of positions,a frame supporting the keys including longitudinally extending rackbars, a plurality of shafts extending at right angles to the rack barsand mounted upon the frame of the instrument, one of the shaftsextending out through the front of the instrument, a plurality of pairsof rollers mounted upon the shafts and having meshing engagement withthe rack bars, each of said rollers having opposed flanges embracing therack bars and that shaft extending through the front of the instrumenthaving a finger hold whereby it may be operated.

2. In amusical instrument, the combination with the action thereof, ofkeys mounted for movement beneath the action and adapted thereby toregister with the action in a plurality of positions, a key bed uponwhich the keys are fulcrumed, longitudinally extending rack bars uponwhich the key bed is mounted, a plurality of shafts extending at rightangles to the rack bars and mounted upon the frame of the instrument, aplurality of pairs of flanged rollers mounted upon the shafts andmeshing with the rack bars, and manually operable means for rotating oneof said shafts.

3. In a piano, the combination with the piano action, including aplurality of abstracts, one for each key, of keys mounted for movementbeneath the abstract and normally engaging the same, said keys beingadapted to register with the abstracts in a plurality of positions, aframe supporting the keys including longitudinally extending rack bars,a plurality of shafts extending at right angles to the rack bars andmounted upon the frame of the piano, a plurality of pairs of flangedrollers mounted upon the shafts and having meshing engagement with therack bars, means for rotating one of said shafts, a mei'nber disposedbehind all of the abstracts and above the keys, and manually operablemeans extending from the front of the piano whereby said member may beoperated to raise or lower the abstracts out of or into engagement withthe keys.

OSCAR RICHARDS.

